Surveillance for non-O157 STEC and virulence genes in diarrhea samples collected in Shanghai Minhang

Objective To survey the distribution of non-O157 STEC and its virulence genes in diarrhea samples collected in Shanghai Minhang.Methods Anal swab samples of diarrhea patients who were confirmed to be Escherichia coli positive were collected from three disease surveillance units and one hospitals located in Shanghai Minhang,bacterial isolation and culture,biochemical and serological approaches were used to identify non-O157 STEC,virulence genes specific PCR was used to detect stx1,stx2,eae,hly,etpD,and katP genes.Results Of the 380 Escherichia coli positive patient samples (185 adults and 195 children),40 (30 children and 10 adults) patient samples were non-O157 STEC positive,the positive rate of the children is significantly higher than that of adults.All 40 non-O157 STEC isolated showed stx2 positive,the positive rate of stx1 and eae were very low,of 380 samples,we had not detected hly,etpD,and katP genes.Conclusion Non-O157 STEC is one of the major pathogens to cause diarrhea especially in children in Shanghai Minhang. Key words: Escherichia;  Genes;  Diarrhea